Poultry News
  • Production
    • Broiler Production
    • Ducks
    • Egg Production
    • Game
    • Hatching
    • Housing
    • Turkeys
  • Processing
  • Business & Politics
    • Business
    • Economics
    • EU & Politics
    • Marketing
    • People
    • Training & Education
  • Welfare
    • Environment
    • Food Safety
    • Vet & Medication
    • Welfare
  • Feed
  • Genetics
  • New Products
  • Magazines
    • August 2025
    • 2025 Poultry Health supplement
    • July 2025
    • 2025 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    • June 2025
    • 2025 Innovation supplement
    • May 2025
    • April 2025
    • March 2025
    • 2025 Feed and Nutrition supplement
    • February 2025
    • January 2025
    • December 2024
    • November 2024
    • October 2024
    • September 2024
    • 2024 Building for the Future supplement
    • August 2024
    • 2024 Poultry Health supplement
    • July 2024
    • 2024 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    • June 2024
    • 2024 Innovation supplement
    • Pig & Poultry Fair 2024
    • May 2024
    • April 2024
    • March 2024
    • February 2024
    • January 2024
    • December 2023
    • November 2023
    • Processing Equipment Supplement – Nov 2023
    • October 2023
    • Building Supplement – Sept 2023
    • September 2023
  • Jobs
    • Browse Jobs
    • Post a Job
    • Manage Jobs
  • Events
    • National Egg and Poultry Awards
    • Poultry Fair
    • Webinars
Twitter LinkedIn
  • FREE Email Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact Us
Twitter LinkedIn
Podcast
Poultry News
  • Production
    • Broiler Production
    • Ducks
    • Egg Production
    • Game
    • Hatching
    • Housing
    • Turkeys
  • Processing
  • Business & Politics
    • Business
    • Economics
    • EU & Politics
    • Marketing
    • People
    • Training & Education
  • Welfare
    • Environment
    • Food Safety
    • Vet & Medication
    • Welfare
  • Feed
  • Genetics
  • New Products
  • Magazines
    1. August 2025
    2. 2025 Poultry Health supplement
    3. July 2025
    4. 2025 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    5. June 2025
    6. 2025 Innovation supplement
    7. May 2025
    8. April 2025
    9. March 2025
    10. 2025 Feed and Nutrition supplement
    11. February 2025
    12. January 2025
    13. December 2024
    14. November 2024
    15. October 2024
    16. September 2024
    17. 2024 Building for the Future supplement
    18. August 2024
    19. 2024 Poultry Health supplement
    20. July 2024
    21. 2024 National Egg and Poultry Awards finalists supplement
    22. June 2024
    23. 2024 Innovation supplement
    24. Pig & Poultry Fair 2024
    25. May 2024
    26. April 2024
    27. March 2024
    28. February 2024
    29. January 2024
    30. December 2023
    31. November 2023
    32. Processing Equipment Supplement – Nov 2023
    33. October 2023
    34. Building Supplement – Sept 2023
    35. September 2023
    Featured

    Poultry Business – August 2025 issue out now

    By Chloe RyanAugust 13, 2025
    Recent

    Poultry Business – August 2025 issue out now

    August 13, 2025

    2025 Poultry Health supplement out now

    August 13, 2025

    Poultry Business – July 2025 issue

    July 1, 2025
  • Jobs
    • Browse Jobs
    • Post a Job
    • Manage Jobs
  • Events
    • National Egg and Poultry Awards
    • Poultry Fair
    • Webinars
Twitter LinkedIn
Poultry News
News

Vaccine shows promise against widespread chicken disease

Chloe RyanBy Chloe RyanNovember 8, 20182 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

A new vaccine strategy could offer protection to millions of chickens threatened by a serious respiratory disease.

Infectious bronchitis virus is highly contagious and responsible for major economic losses to the poultry industry worldwide. Infected chickens experience weight loss, decreased egg production and impaired egg quality. They are also left vulnerable to other diseases.

Current vaccines protect against some strains of the virus, but not others. Experts say these failures are possibly linked to differences in the spike protein – the protein which enables the virus to attach to and enter cells – between strains of the virus.

Research is needed to develop new vaccines that protect against multiple strains of infectious bronchitis.

Researchers at The Roslin Institute and the Pirbright Institute tested a new approach using a specialist type of vaccine – known as recombinant virus vaccines. These vaccines use harmless or weak versions of a virus or bacteria to introduce microbes into cells in the body.

In this instance, experts used recombinant viruses with different spike proteins as vaccines to build two versions of a harmless virus.

Results show the vaccine offered partial protection against infectious bronchitis virus, but further research is needed to develop a more robust vaccine.

Researchers say these recombinant vaccines have potential to be more cost effective and respond to emerging new virus strains. The next step will be to make a vaccine that remains harmless but induces a stronger immune response. The research is published in the “Journal of Virology”.

“There is a real need to develop new vaccines against infectious bronchitis that protect against multiple strains and offer rapid responses. We are trying to make a vaccine that offers broad protection, but further research is needed to develop a more robust vaccine,” said Professor Lonneke Vervelde of The Roslin Institute.

“Our research hopes to develop more cost effective and efficient commercial vaccines that are capable of protecting chickens against this serious disease,” said Dr Erica Bickerton of the Pirbright Institute.

Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
Previous ArticlePig & Poultry Fair wins national award
Next Article Rural crime needs to be a top police priority all year round, NFU says
Chloe Ryan

Editor of Poultry Business, Chloe has spent the past decade writing about the food industry from farming, through manufacturing, retail and foodservice. When not working, dog walking and reading biographies are her favourite hobbies.

Read Similar Stories

News

Pilgrim’s Europe saves 26 million litres of water through PureTec partnership

September 8, 20252 Mins Read
New Products

Labour-saving robot positions poultry products for precision cutting

September 8, 20252 Mins Read
Genetics

New pedigree breeding facility for Hendrix Genetics

September 4, 20251 Min Read
Latest News

Pilgrim’s Europe saves 26 million litres of water through PureTec partnership

September 8, 2025

Emma Reynolds named new Defra secretary in Labour reshuffle

September 8, 2025

Labour-saving robot positions poultry products for precision cutting

September 8, 2025
Sponsored Content

How can UK farmers make poultry profitable without losing welfare?

September 1, 2025

Precision Nutrition: A global approach to reducing broiler feed cost.

August 1, 2025
© 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms & Conditions

  • Farmers Weekly
  • AA Farmer
  • Farm Contractor
  • Pig World

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.